2023–24 MC Alger season explained

Club:	MC Alger
Season:	2023–24
Owner:	Sonatrach
Manager:	Patrice Beaumelle
Mgrtitle:	Head coach
Chairman:	Mohamed Hakim Hadj Redjem
Chrtitle:	President
Stadium:	Omar Benrabah Stadium Stade du 5 Juillet
League:	Ligue 1
League Result:	1st
Cup1:	Algerian Cup
Cup1 Result:	Runners-up
League Topscorer:	Youcef Belaïli (14 goals)
Season Topscorer:	Youcef Belaïli (16 goals)
Prevseason:	2022–23
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The 2023–24 season, is MC Alger's 55th season and the club's 20th consecutive season in the top flight of Algerian football. In addition to the domestic league, MC Alger are participating in the Algerian Cup.

Review

Background

In a recent press release, August 7, 2023, the Mouloudia Club d'Alger announced the renewal of its contract with its equipment supplier Puma. This new lease links the Algiers club to the German company specializing in the manufacturing of sporting goods for the next two seasons.^[1] On 5 October 2023 MC Alger announced the appointment of the club's former player Mohamed Khazrouni to the position of general coordinator of the first team, as a reminder, the position of general coordinator of the first team has been vacant since the departure of Fayçal Badji.^[2] The MC Alger sports center has risen from the ground better yet, he’s moving forward with sure steps. According to an internal source, it should be ready by the end of the current year. The photo of the chairman of the board of directors of the MCA from the top of a glass building alone symbolizes the state of progress of the training and training center of the MC Alger in Zéralda.^[3] According to an authorized source, this complex, which will include an administrative building, a hotel, two conference rooms and two training fields, one of which will be made of hybrid grass, will be ready in December 2023.

Pre-season

MC Alger squad returned to training on September 3, 2023, after a break of a few days decided by Patrice Beaumelle. After a first preparation course in Rennes in France, Youcef Belaili's teammates will continue with a second part in the Capital. They trained at École supérieure d'hôtellerie et restauration d'Alger (ESHRA).^[4] Beaumelle added « I am satisfied with the boys’ performance. They were able to repeat the scales and continue to create automatisms. We were able to recover all the players along with those who could not travel for the preparation. I'm trying to do a squad tour and get everyone ready for the start of the championship ».^[5]

First-team transfers (summer transfer window)

After the end of last season, club president Mohamed Hakim Hadj Redjem announced that the club would make major signings, MC Alger has its first summer recruit he is ASEC Mimosas midfielder Mohamed Zougrana, The Ivorian international has signed up for a period of four years. The amount of the transfer is estimated at 200,000 euros according to some sources.^[6] The next day Hadj Redjem signing two seasons with international defender Djamel Benlamri coming from the Emirates.^[7] On July 27, Sofiane Bayazid striker USM Khenchela joined Mouloudia for three seasons who managed to redeem his letter of release. According to several consistent sources, the amount of the transfer would be 4 billion centimes.^[8]

On August 9, after long negotiations the algerian international Youcef Belaïli joined MC Alger for two seasons, who had been without a club since April after terminating his contract with Ajaccio, Belaïli who will wear number 10 sought through his father to find a club in Europe but it was ultimately in Algeria that he bounced around for 8 years.^[9] Belaïli signs contract with the highest salary ever received by a player in Ligue 1, sources close to the matter assure that the two parties had agreed that the monthly salary would be around 1.5 billion with an advance of 8 months.^[10] On August 21, MC Alger signed a contract with Ivorian striker Youssouf Dao for two seasons coming from Sparta Prague.^[11] On August 30, Zakaria Naidji is officially a Mouloudia d’Alger player two days after the announcement of his departure from Stade Lavallois and signed a three-year contract.^[12]

Season run-in

The Greens and Reds are imposing an infernal pace on the other competitors and the gap is widening little by little. MC Alger solid leader of the Ligue 1 has so far collected 27 points in 10 Ligue 1 matches, a lead of nine points over the runner-up JS Saoura. Only CR Belouizdad can get closer to five points by winning its three late maths. With a boss-sized Belaïli and players in good shape like Naidji, Bayazid, and Zoungrana to name just a few, the Green and Red have been on cloud nine since the start of the current year.^[13] On January 10, 2024, MC Alger and Ooredoo have signed a sponsorship partnership for a period of two years, the signing ceremony between the president of MC Alger Mohamed Hakim Hadj Redjem and the CEO of Ooredoo Roni Tohme took place in the presence of several figures from the capital club including former glories Omar Betrouni and Ali Bencheikh, this is the second time they have united through a sponsorship contract after that of the 2018–2020 period.^[14]

Squad list

Players and squad numbers last updated on 5 July 2024.^{[15] [16]}
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Nat.	Name	Position	Date of Birth (Age)	Signed from	Signed in	Contract ends	Transfer fees	Apps	Goals
Goalkeepers
1		Abdelatif Ramdane	GK	September 15, 2023	JS Kabylie	2022	2025		16	0
2		Seifeddine Belkhir	GK	September 15, 2023	Youth system		2028	Academy Player	1	0
16		Oussama Litim	GK	September 15, 2023	Al-Ain	2021	2026	Free transfer	45	0
Defenders
4		Djamel Benlamri	CB	September 15, 2023	Al-Wasl	2023	2025	Free transfer	27	0
5		Ayoub Abdellaoui (C.)	CB	September 15, 2023	Ettifaq FC	2022	2026	Free transfer	59	4
14		Hamza Mouali	LB	September 15, 2023	Stade Lavallois	2023	2026		38	0
17		Kamel Hamidi	RB	September 15, 2023	MC Oran	2021	2025		82	1
19		Ayoub Ghezala	CB	September 15, 2023	USM Annaba	2021	2026		80	2
20		Réda Halaïmia	RB	September 15, 2023	Beerschot	2022	2026	Free transfer	60	1
27		Abdelkader Menezla	CB	September 15, 2023	USM Bel Abbès	2022	2026		19	0
Midfielders
3		Massinissa Benchelouche	MF	September 15, 2023	Youth system	2023	2025	Academy Player	0	0
6		Mohamed Benkhemassa	DM	September 15, 2023	Ismaily SC	2023	2027	Free transfer	37	1
8		Feth-Allah Tahar	RW	September 15, 2023	ASO Chlef	2021	2026		84	2
12		Mohamed Zougrana	DM	September 15, 2023	ASEC Mimosas	2023	2028	300,000 €	34	4
13		Dalil Hassen Khodja	MF	September 15, 2023	ES Ben Aknoun	2023	2027		18	0
15		Ammar El Orfi	CM	September 15, 2023	NC Magra	2023	2025	Free transfer	9	0
21		Larbi Tabti	AM	January 5, 2024	Free agent	2024	2026	Free transfer	16	0
22		Khalid Dahmani	MF	September 15, 2023	ASO Chlef	2022	2026		29	0
25		Badreddine Touki	DM	September 15, 2023	WA Boufarik	2021	2026		60	0
26		Moundhir Bouzekri	MF	September 15, 2023	Youth system	2022	2026	Academy Player	17	1
Forwards
7		Sofiane Bayazid	FW	September 15, 2023	USM Khenchela	2023	2026	50,000,000 DA	34	10
9		Romaric Ouattara	FW	January 5, 2024	Stade d'Abidjan	2024	2028	Undisclosed	8	2
10		Youcef Belaïli	FW	September 15, 2023	Ajaccio	2023	2025	Free transfer	26	16
11		Youssouf Dao	FW	September 15, 2023	Sparta Prague B	2023	2025		15	1
18		Khayreddine Merzougui	FW	September 15, 2023	CR Belouizdad	2022	2024	Free transfer	48	15
24		Zakaria Naidji	FW	September 15, 2023	Stade Lavallois	2023	2026	200,000 €	34	12

Transfers

In

Summer

Date		Player	Moving from	Fee	Source
16 July 2023	FW	Ibrahim Morsli		Loan return
19 July 2023	MF
20 July 2023	DF			Free transfer
27 July 2023	FW			Undisclosed
9 August 2023	FW			Free transfer
14 August 2023	MF	Dalil Hassen Khodja		Free transfer	^[17]
17 August 2023	MF			Free transfer	^[18]
19 August 2023	MF	Ammar El Orfi		Free transfer	^[19]
21 August 2023	FW			Free transfer
30 August 2023	FW			Free transfer

Winter

Date		Player	Moving from	Fee	Source
20 January 2024	FW	Romaric Ouattara		Undisclosed	^[20]
4 February 2024	MF			Free transfer	^[21]

Out

Summer

Date		Player	Moving to	Fee	Source
9 June 2023	GK			Free transfer	^[22]
17 June 2023	DF			Free transfer	^[23]
18 June 2023	DF			Free transfer	^[24]
18 July 2023	DF	Aziz Benabdi		Free transfer	^[25]
10 August 2023	FW	Abdelmalek Oukil		Loan	^[26]
16 August 2023	FW	Ibrahim Morsli		Free transfer	^[27]
21 August 2023	FW			Free transfer	^[28]
27 August 2023	FW	Ramzi Haif		Free transfer	^[29]
6 September 2023	FW	Razafindranaivo Koloina		Free transfer (Released)

Winter

Date		Player	Moving to	Fee	Source
11 January 2024	FW	Ali Haroun		Free transfer (Released)	^[30]
31 January 2024	FW			Free transfer (Released)	^[31]
5 February 2024	MF			Free transfer (Released)

New contracts

		Player	Contract length	Contract end	Date	Source
5		Ayoub Abdellaoui				^[32]
20		Réda Halaïmia				^[33]
6		Mohamed Benkhemassa				^[34]
12		Mohamed Zoungrana

Competitions

Overview

Competition	Record								Started round	Final position / round	First match	Last match
Ligue 1		Winners	16 September 2023	14 June 2024
Algerian Cup		Runners-up	2 February 2024	5 July 2024
Total Ligue 1 See main article: 2023–24 Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1. Matches The league fixtures were announced on 24 August 2023.^[35] All times are local, WAT (UTC+1). Algerian Cup See main article: 2023–24 Algerian Cup. Squad information Appearances and goals No. Player Ligue 1 Algerian Cup Total Goalkeepers 1 GK Abdelatif Ramdane 10 10 0 6 6 0 16 16 0 2 GK Seifeddine Belkhir 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 16 GK Oussama Litim 19 19 0 0 0 0 19 19 0 Defenders 4 CB Djamel Benlamri 23 20 0 4 3 0 27 23 0 5 CB Ayoub Abdellaoui 28 27 2 4 4 1 32 31 3 14 LB Hamza Mouali 27 26 0 5 5 0 32 31 0 17 RB Kamel Hamidi 15 7 0 5 4 0 20 11 0 19 CB Ayoub Ghezala 21 12 1 5 5 0 26 17 1 20 RB Réda Halaïmia 29 27 1 4 3 0 33 30 1 27 CB Abdelkader Menezla 7 1 0 4 0 0 11 1 0 Midfielders 3 MF Massinissa Benchelouche 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 DM Mohamed Benkhemassa 24 22 1 5 5 0 29 27 1 8 AM Feth-Allah Tahar 23 18 0 4 4 0 27 22 0 12 DM Mohamed Zougrana 28 26 3 6 6 1 34 32 4 13 MF Dalil Hassen Khodja 17 7 0 1 1 0 18 8 0 15 CM Ammar El Orfi 7 1 0 2 0 0 9 1 0 21 AM Larbi Tabti 12 7 0 4 1 0 16 8 0 22 MF Khalid Dahmani 10 7 0 1 1 0 11 8 0 25 MF Badreddine Touki 12 4 0 1 0 0 13 4 0 26 MF Moundhir Bouzekri 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 67 MF Oussama Benhaoua 2 1 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 Forwards 7 CF Sofiane Bayazid 28 22 8 6 5 2 34 27 10 9 FW Romaric Ouattara 5 3 1 3 0 1 8 3 2 10 LW Youcef Belaïli 21 21 14 5 5 2 26 26 16 11 CF Youssouf Dao 15 4 1 0 0 0 15 4 1 18 CF Khayreddine Merzougui 28 8 9 5 2 2 33 10 11 24 CF Zakaria Naidji 28 27 11 6 6 1 34 33 12 41 FW Mehdi Boucherit 11 1 1 4 0 2 15 1 3 FW Fares Belaili 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 Players transferred out during the season 21 AM / RW Mehdi Zerkane 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 9 ST Ali Haroun 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 23 LW Chouaib Debbih 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total 30 55 5 12 35 67 Goalscorers Includes all competitive matches. width=10 No. width=10 Nat. width=140 Player width=10 Pos. width=40 width=40 width=10 TOTAL 10 FW 14 2 16 24 FW 11 1 12 18 FW 9 2 11 7 FW 8 2 10 12 MF 3 1 4 41 Mehdi Boucherit FW 1 2 3 5 DF 2 1 3 9 Romaric Ouattara FW 1 1 2 6 MF 1 0 1 11 FW 1 0 1 20 DF 1 0 1 19 Ayoub Ghezala DF 1 0 1 Own Goals 2 0 2 Totals 55 12 67 Assists width=10 No. width=10 Nat. width=140 Player width=10 Pos. width=40 width=40 width=10 TOTAL 10 FW 12 2 14 24 FW 5 1 6 11 FW 4 0 4 8 Fethallah Tahar MF 3 0 3 20 DF 2 0 2 17 Kamel Hamidi DF 2 0 2 12 MF 1 1 2 6 MF 1 0 1 67 Oussama Benhaoua MF 1 0 1 7 FW 1 0 1 14 DF 1 0 1 9 Romaric Ouattara FW 0 1 1 41 Mehdi Boucherit FW 0 1 1 Totals 31 6 37 Penalties width=120 Date width=60 Nation width=150 Name width=150 Opponent width=50 Scored? 11 November 2023 Youcef Belaïli ASO Chlef 17 November 2023 JS Saoura 25 November 2023 US Souf 9 March 2024 Khayreddine Merzougui CR Zaouia 30 March 2024 Youcef Belaïli USM Khenchela 14 April 2024 WA Tlemcen 26 May 2024 Khayreddine Merzougui JS Kabylie 14 June 2024 Youcef Belaïli MC Oran Clean sheets Includes all competitive matches. Clean sheets width=15 width=15 width=210 Name width=40 width=40 width=40 width=40 Total 1 Abdelatif Ramdane 16 8 8 2 10 2 Seifeddine Belkhir 1 1 0 0 0 16 Oussama Litim 19 16 11 0 11 TOTALS 25 19 2 21 References

Notes and References

1. Web site: MC Alger : Le club renouvelle son contrat avec Puma . DZfoot . August 8, 2023. December 13, 2023.
2. Web site: MC Alger : Khazrouni intègre la direction du Mouloudia . DZfoot . October 5, 2023. December 13, 2023.
3. Web site: MCA, Une source autorisée l'a confirmé à El Moudjahid : Réception du centre d'entraînement de Zéralda en décembre . . November 1, 2023. December 13, 2023.
4. Web site: MC Alger : L'équipe continue sa préparation à Alger . DZfoot . September 4, 2023. December 13, 2023.
5. Web site: Beaumelle (MC Alger) : « On se prépare en silence » . DZfoot . September 8, 2023. December 13, 2023.
6. Web site: MCA : un international ivoirien débarque . Mediafootdz . 19 July 2023 . 28 July 2023.
7. Web site: Mercato : Djamel Benlamri signe au MCA . dzfoot.com . 20 July 2023 . 28 July 2023.
8. Web site: Mercato: Bayazid rejoint le MC Alger . Le Score . 27 July 2023 . 28 July 2023.
9. Web site: MCA : Signature de Belaili, officiel ! . dzfoot.com . 9 August 2023 . 9 August 2023.
10. Web site: Le MCA s'offre le «roi» Belaïli . Competition . August 9, 2023. December 13, 2023.
11. Web site: Football: MCA: l'Ivoirien, Youssouf Daou a signé . rivalite.dz . 21 August 2023 . 21 August 2023.
12. Web site: MCA : L'attaquant Zakaria Naidji a signé . dzfoot.com . 30 August 2023 . 30 August 2023.
13. Web site: Ligue 1 : Qui pourra arrêter le Mouloudia d'Alger ? . DZfoot . 19 December 2023. 20 December 2023.
14. Web site: MC Alger : Ooredoo nouveau sponsor . Le Score . 10 January 2024. 10 January 2024.
15. Web site: FICHE DU CLUB: MC ALGER.
16. Web site: Joueurs du MC Alger.
17. Web site: MC Alger : Hassen-Khodja 7e recrue . mediafootdz.dz . 14 August 2023 . 14 August 2023.
18. Web site: MCA : Le club officialise l'arrivée de Zerkane . dzfoot.com . 17 August 2023 . 17 August 2023.
19. Web site: Mercato: El Orfi signe au MC Alger . lescore.dz . 19 August 2023 . 19 August 2023.
20. Web site: MC Alger : Romaric Ouattara signe jusqu'en 2028 . mediafootdz.dz . 20 January 2024 . 23 January 2024.
21. Web site: MCA : Tabti s'engage pour 2 ans . competition.dz . 4 February 2024 . 5 February 2024.
22. Web site: MC Alger : Farid Chaal file en Arabie Saoudite . africafootunited.com . 9 June 2023 . 28 July 2023.
23. Web site: Algérie / Ligue 1 Mobilis- MC Alger : Boualem Mesmoudi rompt son contrat . africafootunited.com . 17 June 2023 . 14 August 2023.
24. Web site: MC Alger : Houari Ferhani quitte le Mouloudia . africafootunited.com . 18 June 2023 . 18 August 2023.
25. Web site: MC Alger : Aziz Benabdi résilie son contrat . africafootunited.com . 18 July 2023 . 18 August 2023.
26. Web site: استعارة اوكيل لموسم . annasronline.com . 10 August 2023 . 10 August 2023.
27. Web site: المولودية تفسخ عقد مرسلي . annasronline.com . 16 August 2023 . 16 August 2023.
28. Web site: مولودية الجزائر تفسخ عقد لاعبها جوزيف ايسو . ennaharonline.com . 21 August 2023 . 21 August 2023.
29. Web site: حايف يلتحق بالاتحاد السوفي قادما من المولودية . ennaharonline.com . 28 August 2023 . 28 August 2023.
30. Web site: HAROUN, PREMIER LIBÉRÉ DU MERCATO HIVERNAL . derbypresse.dz . 11 January 2024 . 23 January 2024.
31. Web site: الإدارة أنهت تعاقدها مع ذبيح . dzair-tube.dz . 31 January 2024 . 31 January 2024.
32. Web site: MC Alger : Abdellaoui prolonge jusqu'en 2026 . mediafootdz.dz . 19 December 2023 . 19 December 2023.
33. Web site: MCA : Reda Halaimia prolongé . mediafootdz.dz . 20 December 2023 . 20 December 2023.
34. Web site: MC Alger : Trois autres joueurs vont prolonger . DZfoot . 20 December 2023 . 20 December 2023.
35. Web site: Ligue 1 Mobilis 2023-2024 : le calendrier dévoilé . .mediafootdz.dz . 24 August 2023 . 24 August 2023.